Gig Harbor man accused of fatally shooting 76-year-old neighbor has been charged
A Gig Harbor man arrested in the shooting a 76-year-old neighbor he accused of scaring off wildlife in his yard has been charged with first-degree murder, according to court records.
Mark Allen Erisman, 58, pleaded not guilty at arraignment Wednesday. Superior Court Judge Alicia Burton set bail at $1 million.
Investigators responded to the shooting Oct. 3 in the 6500 block of Valley View Drive Northwest in Gig Harbor.
The Medical Examiner’s Office has not released the name of the neighbor.
Charging papers give this account of what happened:
Sheriff’s deputies and a mental health responder contacted Erisman about 10:30 a.m. Oct. 1 because he had been yelling threats that he was going to hurt himself.
Erisman seemed frustrated with his neighbor, who he thought had scared off wildlife in his yard.
“He declined resources and calmed down significantly after being contacted,” the declaration for determination of probable cause said.
A couple days later Erisman called 911, again talking about wildlife disappearing.
“A mental health co-responder again contacted the defendant who was very agitated and demanded to speak to deputies after ‘finding a device’ in his neighbor’s yard,” the probable cause statement said.
Erisman again threatened to hurt himself, and deputies who responded to his home weren’t able to find him.
Later that afternoon, Oct. 3, Erisman’s nephew called 911 after Erisman allegedly called him and said he’d shot somebody.
“He told his nephew that he was in trouble, and that he was going to turn himself in,” the probable cause statement said. “The nephew reported that he believed that his uncle had undiagnosed mental health issues.”
Someone who used to work with Erisman also spoke to deputies. She allegedly said Erisman showed up at her home and said he shot a woman seven times.
Erisman reportedly told the coworker the shooting “... had something to do with the wildlife not coming to his home anymore, and he thought that the female victim had an ‘electronic repellent device,’” the probable cause statement said.
She also said Erisman was upset that no one showed up when he called a suicide hotline.
Deputies went to his neighborhood again to check on Erisman and his neighbor.
It looked like the woman’s door had been kicked in. They found the 76-year-old dead inside the home, five shell casings inside the front door, and one shell casing in the driveway.
“The medical examiner determined that the victim died as a result of the multiple gun shot wounds, and declared the manner of death to be homicide,” the probable cause statement said.
Erisman’s vehicle was found about 9 p.m. on Ruston Way, and he was walking nearby.
He was detained without incident and reportedly said, “You got me,” and, “The gun is in the car,” the probable cause statement said.
Erisman allegedly asked, “Is she dead?” and said: “I cried out for help so many times and no one helped me. I was yelling for help, but no one helped me.”
“You got me dead to rights,” he said.
Neighbors suggested to detectives that Erisman tried to break into the woman’s home before and that she told another neighbor Erisman was dangerous.
The woman also recently told a neighbor Erisman needed a welfare check, and, out of concern, she installed a surveillance camera.
Erisman told a deputy that he saw the woman getting her mail and that she ignored him when he asked, “Why would you do this to me?” regarding the missing wildlife.
He called 911 and “said that instead of being contacted by law enforcement, he was contacted by a mental health co-responder, which upset him,” the probable cause statement said.
Erisman said he planned to kill himself but changed his mind.
“He reported that he later just ‘snapped’ and grabbed his gun and walked to the victim’s residence,” the probable cause statement said. “He stated that he fired one round at the ’frequency device’ (surveillance camera) and then kicked in the victim’s front door.”
He saw the woman in the doorway and shot her, he allegedly said.
In asking for the $1 million bail, deputy prosecutor Lisa Wagner told the court the state is worried Erisman could be a danger to himself and to other neighbors.
This story was originally published October 7, 2020 at 2:34 PM.
